The Cathedral Basilica of St. John the Baptist is a

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

cathedral A cathedral is a church that contains the '' cathedra'' () of a bishop, thus serving as the central church of a diocese, conference, or episcopate. Churches with the function of "cathedral" are usually specific to those Christian denomination ...

and

minor basilica In the Catholic Church, a basilica is a designation given by the Pope to a church building. Basilicas are distinguished for ceremonial purposes from other churches. The building need not be a basilica in the architectural sense (a rectangular ...

in Lafayette Square at 222 East Harris Street,

Savannah A savanna or savannah is a mixed woodland-grassland (i.e. grassy woodland) ecosystem characterised by the trees being sufficiently widely spaced so that the Canopy (forest), canopy does not close. The open canopy allows sufficient light to rea ...

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States Georgia may also refer to: Places Historical states and entities * Related to the ...

, in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

. It is the

mother church Mother church or matrice is a term depicting the Christian Church as a mother in her functions of nourishing and protecting the believer. It may also refer to the primary church of a Christian denomination or diocese, i.e. a cathedral or a metro ...

of the

Roman Catholic Diocese of Savannah The Diocese of Savannah is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or diocese of the Catholic Church in the southern United States comprising 90 of the southern counties of the state of Georgia.

History

The

colonial charter A charter is a document that gives colonies the legal rights to exist. Charters can bestow certain rights on a town, city, university, or other institution. Colonial charters were approved when the king gave a grant of exclusive powers for the go ...

of Savannah prohibited Roman Catholics from settling in the city. The English trustees feared that Catholics would be more loyal to the

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries **Spanish cuisine Other places * Spanish, Ontario, Cana ...

authorities in

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...

than to the English government in Georgia, however this prohibition faded shortly after the

American Revolution The American Revolution was an ideological and political revolution that occurred in British America between 1765 and 1791. The Americans in the Thirteen Colonies formed independent states that defeated the British in the American Revolut ...

. The church's congregation was reorganized about 1796. French Catholic émigrés established the first church in 1799 after they fled

Haiti Haiti (; ht, Ayiti ; French: ), officially the Republic of Haiti (); ) and formerly known as Hayti, is a country located on the island of Hispaniola in the Greater Antilles archipelago of the Caribbean Sea, east of Cuba and Jamaica, and ...

after slave rebellions that began on the

Caribbean The Caribbean (, ) ( es, El Caribe; french: la Caraïbe; ht, Karayib; nl, De Caraïben) is a region of the Americas that consists of the Caribbean Sea, its islands (some surrounded by the Caribbean Sea and some bordering both the Caribbean Se ...

island in 1791. It became the main church for free blacks from Haiti in the early 19th century. Construction began on the new Cathedral of St. John the Baptist in 1859. The structure was nearly destroyed by fire in 1898 but through diligent effort was rebuilt by 1899. The Cathedral Basilica of St. John the Baptist was the first building in Georgia constructed of brick. It features 81 stained glass windows, 16 gargoyles, is 214 feet tall with a roof height of 96 feet, took over 90,000 copper nails and 45,000 slates to construct. The congregation constructed its first church on Liberty Square in 1779 and in 1811, chose a site on Drayton and Perry Streets for a larger building. Bishop John England of the

Diocese of Charleston The Roman Catholic Diocese of Charleston is an ecclesiastical territory, or diocese, of the Roman Catholic Church in the Southern United States that comprises the entire state of South Carolina. Currently, the diocese consists of 96 parishes an ...

, which encompassed Savannah, consecrated the new church April 1, 1839.

Pope Pius IX Pope Pius IX ( it, Pio IX, ''Pio Nono''; born Giovanni Maria Mastai Ferretti; 13 May 1792 – 7 February 1878) was head of the Catholic Church from 1846 to 1878, the longest verified papal reign. He was notable for convoking the First Vatican ...

established the Diocese of Savannah in July 1850 and the congregation began to plan for a new cathedral on Lafayette Square in 1870 under Savannah's fourth Bishop, The Right Reverend Ignatius Persico. Most Reverend James Roosevelt Bayley, Archbishop of Baltimore, presided at the dedication of the

Neo-Gothic Gothic Revival (also referred to as Victorian Gothic, neo-Gothic, or Gothick) is an architectural movement that began in the late 1740s in England. The movement gained momentum and expanded in the first half of the 19th century, as increasingly ...

sanctuary April 30, 1876. However, the brick structure lacked spires which were not added until 1896 when it also received a coating of stucco and whitewash. On February 6, 1898, a fire swept the building and left only the walls and towers, however the congregation quickly rebuilt and was able to celebrate Christmas Mass in the new facility in 1899. But again, the structure was not complete and interior decoration took an additional 13 years. Stained glass windows were installed around 1904. The parish undertook subsequent renovation projects in 1959–1965, which addressed heating, cooling and lighting systems and decoration; 1984–1985, to reinforce structural foundations and implement changes suggested by the

Second Vatican Council The Second Ecumenical Council of the Vatican, commonly known as the , or , was the 21st Catholic ecumenical councils, ecumenical council of the Roman Catholic Church. The council met in St. Peter's Basilica in Rome for four periods (or sessions) ...

and 1998–2000 to install new roofing, and restore the original interior color palette and decorations.

Pope Francis Pope Francis ( la, Franciscus; it, Francesco; es, link=, Francisco; born Jorge Mario Bergoglio, 17 December 1936) is the head of the Catholic Church. He has been the bishop of Rome and sovereign of the Vatican City State since 13 March 2013. ...

elevated the status of the church to minor basilica in 2020.

Gallery

File:Cathedral of St. John the Baptist, Savannah, Georgia.jpg, The cathedral in an undated pre-1914 photo File:Cathedral of St. John the Baptist Savannah, Georgia Interior.jpg, Historic photo of the rear nave and organ loft File:Savannah cathedral 2015 17 049.jpg, Rear nave and organ loft in 2015 File:Savannah cathedral 2015 17 046.jpg, High altar and apse File:21-26-031-cathedral.jpg, Blessed Virgin Mary Chapel File:Savannah cathedral 2015 17 052.jpg, Window and decoration of the south transept File:Cathedral of St. John the Baptist, Savannah, GA, US (16).jpg, South transept window detail File:Cathedral of St. John the Baptist, Savannah, GA, US (14).jpg, Stained glass detail

References

External links

*
Official Cathedral SiteDiocese of Savannah Official Site
{{Coord, 32.07333, N, 81.09088, W, type:landmark_source:kolossus-frwiki, display=title 19th-century Roman Catholic church buildings in the United States Basilica churches in the United States Churches in Savannah, Georgia Churches on the National Register of Historic Places in Georgia (U.S. state) French-American culture in Georgia (U.S. state) Haitian-American culture in Georgia (U.S. state) Historic district contributing properties in Georgia (U.S. state) National Register of Historic Places in Savannah, Georgia John the Baptist, Savannah Roman Catholic churches completed in 1896 Roman Catholic churches in Georgia (U.S. state) Lafayette Square (Savannah) buildings Savannah Historic District

History

Gallery

See also

References

External links